


Protector Not Invader

by Paper_Sunflowers



Series: 🛸 Invader Zim 🛸 [1]
Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Based on a Tumblr Post, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Don't Like Don't Read, Emotional Hurt, Enemies to Friends, Family, Family Feels, Fighting, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, Hurt, Injury, Inspired By Tumblr, Irken Empire (Invader Zim), Irkens (Invader Zim), Long Shot, No Romance, One Shot, Other, Team as Family, Tumblr, just family - Freeform, no ships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-02
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-10-09 04:01:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20489276
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Paper_Sunflowers/pseuds/Paper_Sunflowers
Summary: When Zim goes up against the tallest it suddenly hits him that he's willing to give up everything for Earth, for its people, and for the family that he's some how made here.It dawns on Zim that's he's not an Invader anymore he's something much more.





	Protector Not Invader

**Author's Note:**

> This fanfiction was inspired by @s-chung from Tumblr please go check her out her work is amazing!
> 
> If you wanna go follow me for some strange reason you can find me on Tumblr @paper-sunflower-lane and on Twitter @SunFlower_Paper.
> 
> Please comment and tell me how I did as well as leave kudos!
> 
> I hope you all have a Blessed morning, noon, night, or whenever you're reading this!
> 
> Hugs & Kisses: Sunny🌻💛🌞

Zim felt pain run through him as he was thrown against the wall his pack was the first thing to hit the metal causing much more pain to go through him than before. This hadn’t been the first time that he had been thrown around and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. Unlike all those other times though this time was different, very different in fact, this time the reason Zim was getting the hell beat out of him wasn’t because he was annoying or destructive but because he was a traitor.

That word surprised even Zim himself since he never thought he would be a traitor, that word wasn’t foreign in the Irken language in fact it was a word that meant death to the Irken Empire for if someone was a traitor then they were terminated on the spot. The word was nearly as bad as Defective which no Irken wanted to be at least that’s what Zim had thought.

Zim tried to push himself up from the ground where he laid pain still running through his body and for a moment he wondered if his PAK had been damaged but he knew it was just the pain since PAKs were meant to withstand nearly any and everything.

Pain ripped through Zim once again as he felt a foot suddenly collided with his stomach causing him to fall back to the ground gasping for air and curling around himself. His head was ringing though he could still hear two voices laughing cruelly at him.

He knew who the laughs belonged to, every Irken did they belonged to the Tallest who were now looking down at Zim with cruel amusement and disgust. 

‘You should have just left it alone Zim it would have been so much better for everyone if you had,” One of the Tallest said and from the sound of his voice, Zim decided it was Red since his voice was the deeper of the two. “I must say you really had us going there for a while,” He laughed and shook his head but Zim could hear the hate and anger lacing the laugh and he knew others could too. 

Well, the others that weren’t completely knocked out from what Zim had done which was what the Tallest were revering too.

“We thought you could actually stop us.” Another voice rang out with laughter this one more shrill making the ringing in his head hurt even more. Zim knew that the Tallest speaking now was Purple since any and everyone could hear his voice from a mile away. “We were actually scared that you would destroy the Irken Empire,” Purple laughed again the sharp sound of his voice making Zim’s head spin in pain as he curled around himself even more.

“Pathetic,” Red said as he watched Zim and shook his head at the once loyal little Irken who was now more of a pest then he ever was. “We really thought that you would be our Doom Zim but it seems we had nothing to worry about,” He said as he moved away from Zim and started to turn his back to the small invader. “You’re still the useless, defective Invader that you always have been and you always will be,” Red said with a sneer as he turned his back completely to Zim, Purple doing the same.

The word Defective rang in Zim’s head bouncing around and causing him to wince in pain. He had tried so hard to prove to not just them but to the entire Irken Empire that he wasn’t useless, that he wasn’t defective but wit as clear he was wrong.

“I’ll tell you what though because you tried so hard we’ll let you watch as we take over your pathetic Earth and destroy everything you love before destroying you,” Red said his voice bringing Zim out of his thoughts as Red didn’t even bother to turn and face Zim. “Just like we should have been we found out you were defective,” He added on as he and Purple kept heading towards the control panel to give the final command.

Zim couldn’t help but feel anger and hate boil inside of him at those words at hearing them threaten his planet and his people.

Those thoughts made Zim freeze for a moment as he thought about what had just gone through his mind. So many years ago he had wanted to destroy the Earth for the Tallest and the Irken Empire now here he was trying to save it and not just trying to save it but also trying to save the people he cared for.

Not just people he cared for but his family.

Family was a foreign word to Irken’s as was caring and love those things were seen as weaknesses. To the Irken Empire, they meant that you were foolish and that there was something wrong with you, it meant you were Defective.

Zim’s eyes widened as he let that thought sink in making him slowly move his head to look through the large window that let him see the Irken Armada heading towards Earth.

Earth his home, the place that somehow expected him when his own birth planet thought he was nothing more than a pest and tried to get rid of him.

Earth where GIR his loyal robot who was his only friend and only family for a long time loved to go to parks, zoos, and disgusting places that sold tacos. GIR didn’t just love those places though he loved Zim as well. He would tell Zim that constantly before he would forget what he was talking about and go about doing something else.

Earth, where he had first met his mortal enemy, turned brother Dib who at first wanted to kill Zim but after Zim had found out that the Tallest had lied to them and had stopped trying to take over the world had seen that they had more in common then they thought.

Earth where Gaz, Dib’s younger sister and now it seemed like she was Zim’s younger sister would beat up anyone that dared mess with the people she loved and then turn right around and make fun of the ones she loved even Zim.

Earth where Dr. Membrane Dib and Gaz’s father had demanded Zim to come over more often after mistaking him and Dib as friends once saying that he was overjoyed to see his son had a friend which was strange since they had actually become friends and family.

As Zim thought about all these things his eyes stayed on the screen large window in front of him and in it he could see his transparent reflection.

He was bruised and bleeding, pink blood was slipping from different cuts across his face, arms, legs, and torso. The bruises were the same way though there were more of them on Zim’s body than there were cuts though he felt grateful for that. Blood was slipping down his face thanks to a cute just above his eye and it was also smeared across his face because of a cut on his cheek and because of his busted lip. His uniform was torn and ripped in different places not to mention stained with the pink blood but it was barely noticeable.

As he looked at himself something seemed to click inside of him, something that he thought he already knew.

Zim realized that he was willing to give up everything, even his own life for the Earth and those that he cared about.

As this thought went through his mind he turned his head towards Red and Purple who still had their backs turned towards him. He had wanted them to love and respect him but deep down inside he knew that they never would.

They had hated him from the moment he was created and Zim had known that but he had hoped that maybe they cared for him in some way but he had been wrong. They had harmed him, belittled him, and instead of killing him like they were supposed to do with defects they sent him into space hoping he’d suffer.

They had lied to him after laughing at his face for five years they finally told him he wasn’t an Invader and cut contact with him leaving him abandoned on a planet that he had tried to destroy for them.

Zim felt the hot anger boil inside of him once more as he forced himself up off the ground pain running through every part of him as his eyes nearly glowed in anger.

“No.” Zim stated causing them both to stop and looked back at him with surprise either it was because he told them no or because they hadn’t thought that he would get back up.

All was silent for a moment as the stared at the smallest Irken that had ever been created before Red turned around once more and glared at him.

“What did you just say?” Red asked the question coming out as a hiss with anger lacing every word that left his mouth.

“Zim… Said… No…” Zim said as he glared at Red gripping tightly to one arm that was badly bruised but if he wasn’t going to let the other cuts and bruises stop him he wasn’t going to let one bad arm stop him either. “Zim won’t let you hurt the Earth,” He growled out his voice got louder his eyes never leaving the Tallest before him.

Zim knew he could die, knew that they could kill him but he honestly didn’t care if he was able to take them with him then the Irken Empire would have no one to lead the. Of course, there was still The Control Brains and of course, there would be other Tallest but at least they would know to stay away from Earth at least he hoped they would.

“How dare you think…” Purple started his voice shrill almost making Zim wince but he forced himself not to as he glared at them. He could hear the whirring sound of his PAK start up as the spider-like legs lifted him into the air and the weapons both the ones that had been programmed in when Zim was created as well as the ones he had created himself came out.

“Zim will not let you take another home from me,” Zim growled out as he glared at the Tallest in front of him trying not to let fear show as their own PAKs sprouted legs and let them loom over him even more than they had before.

Zim knew that this might end badly that he might never get a chance to see the family he had found ever again but if it meant keeping them safe he would do it.

As Zim stood there weapons out and ready to fight he finally accepted that the Tallest were right he wasn’t and Invader. He was too defective to be an Invader and Zim was fine with that.

Zim wasn’t an Invader he was a Protector.


End file.
